Friday, January 27, 2017

Boulder County is
one of the 64 counties of the U.S. state of Colorado of the United States. The Teller Lake in Colorado is in news as
experts believe, it may have to be
drained !

Fishes are
attractive and pleasing to look at ! – there are many species of aquarium fish
that are kept in smaller tanks. Gold
fish in a small round bowl looks pretty
pleasing to eyes! Some species of
Gold fish and koi are amongst the most common pets of modern aquarium. In the holy
‘Kairavini Pushkarini’of Thiruvallikkeni, there were varieties of guppies. In the 70s, Corporation workers would carry
them in small earthern pots and dispense a few of them in the wells at homes after making an
entry on the wall of the building.
Legend has it that the famed Temple tank was fully of lily flowers
giving it the name – but did not have fish.
Guppies were introduced in the middle of last century as they were
effective against mosquito eating its larvae.

Gold fish exist in
a far wider range of colours than the name implies.Gold fish are associated with ancient pottery
of Ming dynasty and there are 100s of varieties.It is considered one of the earliest
domesticated fish.The goldfish
(Carassius auratus auratus) is a freshwater fish in the family Cyprinidae of
order Cypriniformes.Goldfish breeds
vary greatly in size, body shape, fin configuration and colour.There are some who like keeping many
varieties of fish together – community aquaria.

The ones inside have to be compatible in temperament [requirement of any
good society]and water requirements.We tend to think that aquarium pets live in
protected environment and if introduced to natural lake or other water bodies,
could get killed and could vanish soon ! – perhaps not the case !!

Some say that they grow
according to its container and would grow bigger in bigger water bodies – here
is some news of them multiplying in Colorado lake, threatening to destroy the
natural ecosystem.

News sites are
replete of Teller Lake in Boulder, Colorado, being overrun with 3,000-4,000 goldfish. Officials believe four or five fish were
dumped two or three years ago !... the lake becoming a big fish bowl is the
news – the lake in Boulder, Colorado, now
stands invaded by thousands of gold
fish, which wildlife officials say started as someone dumping 'four or five' of
their pets in the water two or three years ago.

The animals have
now multiplied to over 3,000 or 4,000, it's believed, and are threatening to
over-run the natural species in the lake, by eating up all their resources and
spreading unnatural diseases. 'Dumping
your pets into a lake could bring diseases to native animals and plants as well
as out-compete them for resources, ‘Colorado
Parks and Wildlife (CPW) spokeswoman is
quoted as telling ABC News.

Goldfish are not a
native species in Colorado and are very harmful to the local aquatic ecosystem,
it is stated. Fish that are native to the lake that are now
being threatened by the invasive goldfish include channel catfish, blue gill
fish and sun fish. It is stated that local officials are considering two
options - electroshocking the fish or draining the lake – which can be quite
arduous.

The lake is spread
over 12 acres and draining could be cumbersome.
The other method is electrofishing,
where the fish are stunned by an electrical current and removed while they are
paralyzed, which again could involve many workers. Reportedly, it was a successful method used in November 2012 at
Thunderbird Lake, also in Boulder, to remove koi goldfish from the water that
had been improperly introduced. With
electroshocking, crews go out in a boat, stun the fish to paralyze and then
collect the floating fish.

'Nonnative species
can be devastating to native populations by causing disease outbreaks and creating
competition unbalance. – and hence people should not be introducing exotic
species to the environment – is what a Senior aquatic biologist is quoted as
saying. Despite the amount of fish in
the lake, officials have warned locals against retrieving some of the fish and
taking them home as pets. The gold fish will likely end up at a local raptor
rehabilitation program as food.

It is still
considered a ‘pride of possession’ and a document distinguishing between elite
few and the ordinary others - it is the
‘Passport’ – a document issued by the Government, without which a person cannot
embark on an International travel, a document certifying the identity and
nationality of the holder. The elements
of identity are name, date of birth, sex, and place of birth.

Till a couple of decades ago, In
India, only rich had them or whoever possessed one was considered rich ! - the others were who felt the dire need to
go abroad for work and earning !
- the procedures were considered cumbersome and was obtained after some
difficulty of standing in winding queue after filling up pages and providing
substantive documents. It is widely
accepted in all places in India as a mark of identity either for opening of
bank accounts or for any other purpose.
Factually it is more of a document of identity and not a document of
travel into another country or of
consular protection whilst abroad nor provide any privileges. But without passport one cannot obtain the
entry permit or visa enabling travel to a foreign country.

The Indian Passport application
would bemuse one at first look requiring special skills to fill it up properly,
though the requirements are lucidly explained. There are columns of : Name
(provision for name upto 75 character long which would include the Surname; If one has ever changed name, the previous
name in full is to be indicated; Male / Female option; Date of Birth; Place and
country of birth (if born before partition of India at a place which now falls
within Pakistan or Bangladesh, the name of place is to be filled with Country
specified as ‘undivided India’)………………….. The Name of
Father, Mother and Spouse are required to entered. [ write full name of your
parents with expansions of initials ….. ] In fact there is need for writing the
maiden name of the mother. Then there
are the requirements regarding the place of residence with details of duration
in that particular place; details of Educational qualifications et. al. (this is no post
written to help one in filling up a passport application !)

A couple of years back, in UK
(especially after pressure from Gay lobby) – it was no longer be Father / Mother but the option
of :
‘parent 1’ and ‘parent 2’. I
had posted earlier on that and concluded asking – considering that India has
all along followed British rules, whether this rule too would impact us at some
point !!

Here
is an interesting judgment delivered in Jan 2015 by the Honourable Thiru
Justice V. Ramasubramanian at Madras High Court, on a
petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India for the issuance
of a writ of mandamus directing the Passport authorities to issue a passport for the daughter of the
petitioner " mentioning her adoptive father as her father.

In the
impugned case, the petitioner was the mother of a minor girl for whom passport
was sought to be issued. The petitioner
had married in Sept 1998 and had a girl child in 2001. The marriage was short-lived and dissolved by
a decree of divorce. The petitioner is
having the custody of the minor child for the past about 13 years, without any
claim by her former husband. After the decree of divorce, the petitioner
changed the name of her daughter which
was also published in the Government
Gazette. After about 10 years of the
decree of divorce, the petitioner married another person. According to the petitioner, she gave her
minor daughter in adoption to her new husband and the same was also evidenced
by a deed of adoption registered.

With both of
them in software industry and intending to travel abroad, they wanted to take
their minor daughter out of India and hence applied for passport. Later it was known that the application was pending
on account of the discrepancy between the name of the biological father and the
name of the father indicated in the application form. Hence, the petitioner came up
with the writ petition, seeking the issue of a writ of mandamus to direct the
respondents to issue passport to her daughter indicating the name of the
adoptive father.

A circular to
the effect that the name of the step father or stepmother of a child cannot be
written in the passport of the children stood in the way. Going by the same it
was contended by the learned Central
Government Standing Counsel that though there could be a divorce between the
husband and the wife, there cannot be a severance of the relationship between
the parents and a child. There appears
to have been similar instances and a stricter interpretation perhaps could deny
the prayer. It appears that even in the
United States where such questions arise more frequently than they do here,
there is no procedure for replacing the name of the biological father with that
of the stepfather.

The Hon’ble Court observed that
unfortunately, in their anxiety to provide immediate relief and succour to the
separated mothers and their minor children, Courts appear to have forgotten the
larger issues arising in these cases. Some of the issues that may pose
difficulty of being resolved : the names of biological parents as entered in the Hospital Records and in the
Birth Register Extracts can never be changed, as they reflect true statements
of fact. Assuming, (God forbids) that
there is yet another marriage, as it happens without much ado in Western Societies,
is it possible to change the name of the parents every time there is a divorce
followed by a fresh marriage.

When
society evolves and relationships constantly get redefined, legal issues become
more and more complex. Therefore, before jumping into a solution, Courts have a
duty to think of the problems that the solutions themselves may throw up.
Unfortunately, law on this issue has not evolved in India and
hence, we have to look up only to International Conventions and the manner in
which the Courts in other countries deal with such situations. The Hon’ble Justice mentions of a resolution
of UN General Assembly popularly known as "Convention on the Rights of the
Child", which indicates several
parameters. Under Article 7 of the said Convention, a child should be
registered immediately after birth and it shall have the right from birth to a
name. It also has a right to know and be cared by his or her parents. Article
10.2 of the Convention also speaks about the right of the child to maintain direct
contacts with both parents. Therefore,
internationally, it is a well recognised principle of law that the relationship
between parents and children do not get dissolved, except in cases of valid
adoption. But, some religions do not recognise or accept adoptions.

Though the
petitioner was Hindu, the deed of adoption registered, it was not done in
accordance of the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act, 1956. The fundamental premise, on which, the Hindu Law
of Adoptions proceeds is that the relationship between the biological parents
and the children can never get severed, except in accordance with the
provisions of this Act. In such circumstances, Courts could not issue directions to replace
the name of the biological father or mother with that of the stepfather or
mother. The Hon’ble Justice also
observed that for instance, the right of a child to inherit the estate of its
biological father, will get defeated by a direction to effect correction of
entries in the statutory records.

The Court
opined that they are of the view that the Ministry of External Affairs is
obliged to come up with innovative steps and measures to resolve problems of
this nature. The Passport Manual may perhaps have to be amended suitably to
incorporate additional columns in the applications for the issue of passports.
Apart from the columns where the names of the biological parents are to be
indicated, the application form may also contain additional columns where the
names of the step-parents could be indicated, wherever applicable. This will
reduce or even eliminate the possibility of any discrepancy between the entries
in the Birth Register and the School Records or other records.

Therefore,
the Court concluded that they are of the view that the writ petition could be
disposed of with certain directions, both to the Union of India
and to the respondents herein, so that persons similarly placed like the
petitioner are not compelled to approach the Court every time for the issue of
passports. Disposing off the writ
petition, the Court directed :

(1)
The Ministry of External Affairs, Union of India may incorporate suitable
provisions in the Passport Manual and incorporate suitable columns in the
applications for the issue of passports, to enable the parties to indicate either the names of the biological parents or
the names of the adoptive parents or the names of the step parents or all of
them, according as the situation demands.

(2)
In so far as the case on hand is concerned, the respondents shall issue a
passport to the daughter of the petitioner, by indicating the name of the
stepfather, in the column reserved for filling up the name of the father.

The Regional
Passport Officer was further directed to issue passport within 4 weeks.

Wednesday, January 25, 2017

Usain St Leo Bolt, the Jamaican sprinter is regarded as the fastest
human ever timed. He is the first person to hold both the 100 metres and 200
metres world records since fully automatic time became mandatory. He is the
reigning World and Olympic champion in these three events. An eight-time Olympic gold medalist, Bolt won
the 100 m, 200 m and 4 × 100 m relay at three consecutive Olympic Games ! – you
may have to read a rewritten story for no fault of his !!

Do you still
remember 2008 Olympic Games, held at Beijing in Aug, 2008. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 National
Olympic Committees (NOCs) competed in 28 sports and 302 events. China became the 22nd nation to host the
Olympic Games and the 18th to hold a Summer Olympic Games.

Not many of us may
remember or know that Nesta Carer was (yes, WAS) a Gold medallist. Nesta Carter, a Jamaican sprinter, who
specializes in the 100 metres event, was successful as part of the Jamaican 4 x
100 metres relay team, taking gold and setting successive world records at the
2011 World Championships and 2012 London Olympics. On August 11, 2013, Carter
secured an individual 100m World Championship bronze medal in Moscow, behind
Justin Gatlin and teammate Usain Bolt. He followed this with another gold in
the 4 x 100 metres relay. In August 2010 he became only the fifth sprinter to
run the 100 metres in less than 9.8 seconds.

All that is under a
cloud as he goes under the ice taking a medal off Usain Bolt as well as
today, the International Olympic
Committee sanctioned Carter for doping at the 2008 Olympic Games, meaning that
Carter will lose his gold medal for the Men's 4x100m Relay.

Methylhexanamine
has been on the banned list since 2004 and was reclassified as a specialised
substance in 2011. It is also known as 'DMAA' and can be found in sports
supplements. Until 1983, it was sold as a nasal decongestant in the United
States. The US Food & Drug administration say Methylhexanamine 'narrows
blood vessels and arteries, which can elevate blood pressure, and may lead to
cardiovascular problems such as shortness of breath, arrhythmias, tightening in
the chest, and heart attack, as well as seizures and other neurological and
psychological conditions.' The useful effects mean it helps as a body building
aid and with weight loss.

The IOC have
disqualified Jamaica's Nesta Carter from 2008 Olympic Games, as re-analysis of Nester sample, gave a positive test for
prohibited substance methylhexaneamine. Jamaica have now been stripped of their
medals - with Bolt and Co disqualified. The decision means Bolt's triple-triple
of Olympic gold medals is no more

Bolt is no longer
owner of the hallowed ‘triple-triple’ of Olympic sprint titles and will have to
hand back the 4x100m relay gold medal won at Beijing 2008 alongside Carter. The
Jamaican had realised this was a possibility after it emerged last summer that
Carter had retrospectively failed a drugs test from the Beijing Games nine
years ago. It was the team of Asafa
Powell, Nesta Carter, Usain Bolt and Michael Frater who won there. His worst fears were confirmed when the
International Olympic Committee on Wednesday announced it was to nullify the
result of the Jamaican 4x100m team and reallocate the gold medal to Trinidad
and Tobago.

Japan will now be
promoted to silver and Brazil bronze but the Great Britain team, which was
disqualified in the heats, will be unaffected. Carter ran the first leg for
Jamaica’s 4x100m team and Bolt ran the third on the way to a gold medal inside
Beijing’s Bird Nest stadium where he announced himself as a sprinting
superstar.

There was much
fanfare last summer when Bolt became the first person in history to clinch the
‘triple-triple,’ completing the task with victory in the relay inside Rio’s
Joao Havelange stadium. While Bolt is
faultless in this unfortunate situation, a victim of his team-mate’s cheating,
Carter’s use of performance enhancing drugs again casts a shadow over Jamaica’s
sprint medal factory. In 2013 Veronica
Campbell-Brown, Asafa Powell and Sherone Simpson all tested positive leading to
suspicions as to how this tiny island became so dominant on the world stage. Medical
opinion varies as to how potent a drug methylhexanamine is, with one prominent
professor claiming it is only slightly more powerful than a cup of coffee.

·
Q on Mysore War of 1767 and some details on the Col. Who headed East
India Company.

Bliss ~ the voice of SYMA, the
newsletter has silently crossed 100 ** –
the present issue is 106th one. Of
late, I am not in a position to bring out in time every month, thus missing a
few months. Sincerely regret the missing
issues and look forward to the support / contribution of youngsters in ensuring
that it hit the stands every month.

See you all at SYMA Childfest on 28th
& 29th of Jan 2017 – Welcome and invite you all to the
function. இவ்விழா சிறப்புற நடைபெற , உங்கள் அனைவரின் ஒத்துழைப்பையும்
கோருகிறோம்.

Friday, January 20, 2017

At a time,
when much is happening at Marina and entire State is chanting ‘Jallikattu’ – a chance
reading of message from Kenneth Feld, a
CEO – brought some melancholy ! – it is a farewell message, a message about
conclusion by May 2017 !!

The film
Kumki had an elephant as a main character, though the storyline dwelt around
the hero. Elephants are not new to
tinseldom. In ‘Nalla Neram’, a MGR
starrer released in 1972, the storyline
was around choice between love (his wife) and friendship (his loyal and devoted
pet elephants). Rajnikanth and Sripriya too had a hit number – Annai Or Alayam,
the story of a hunter who helps the baby
elephant to reach the mother elephant. Perhaps that song ‘Amma nee sumantha
pillai’ or was it Aimbathilum aasai varum ~ the last of TMS singing for
Illayaraja ? Kamal’s attachment with his
pet elephant coming in the way of his love for Sripriya was the plot for Ram
Lakshman.

In earlier
days, Elephants and Bulls were featured repeatedly in Tamil films as the story
be it mythological or village themes, mingled with life of animals. Slowly mythological films faded, more
specifically Animal Welfare movement came into fore doing propaganda on the
perceived ill-treatment to animals in movies.
The film industry spoofed this concern.
In Kamal / Simran starrer ‘Pammak Sambandham’ - a group of women activists, led by the heroine
would barge into the studio holding placards shouting that animals are
tortured. Kamal would be shown seated on
a platform not directly touching the bull ~ there would be a couple of similar
other scenes too. Animal welfare has
strangled so much that one can notice that recent films have a disclaimer that
animals were not used / tortured and in mega Bahubali, the bull taming scene
was a graphic affair.

Ringling brothers were seven American siblings of German and
French descent who transformed their small touring company of performers into
one of America's largest circuses. Born in McGregor, Iowa and raised in
Baraboo, Wisconsin, they were the children of harness maker Heinrich Friedrich
August Ringling of Hanover, Germany, and Marie Salome Juliar of Ostheim, in
Alsace. They merged their Ringling
Brothers Circus with America's other leading circus troupes, ultimately creating
the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.

The news now is that the
famed American traveling-circus company, would fold its tent forever in May
2017. According to Ringling’s parent company, Feld Entertainment, the decision
was forced by declining ticket sales and high costs.

The sons of August
Rüngeling, in 1882 formed a song-and-dance troupe, the Classic and Comic
Concert Co., and went on the road with it for two seasons. They began adding
circus acts to their show, and they organized their first small circus, in 1884, in their hometown of Baraboo, Wisconsin;
from there they toured the U.S. Midwest. Their progress was slow until they
acquired their first elephant in 1888, after which the circus expanded rapidly.
Now perhaps the same elephant has
unwittingly caused their downfall !

Kenneth Feld, the chief
executive of Feld Entertainment which produces the circus, noted on the
Ringling website that ticket sales had been declining for a while but dropped
dramatically after the elephants left the show in May 2016. The show retooled
itself and added new human acts but was still full of lions, tigers, alpacas,
llamas, and dogs among other animal species; but the drop in sales and high
operating costs “made the circus an unsustainable business,” Feld wrote on the
website.

There’s no question that
it was time for the circus to retire its elephants —just as it was time for
SeaWorld to retire its killer whales and stop making them perform. Many animal
welfare advocates believe that no wild animal should be used in an
entertainment show. For a decade, Ringling fought back against lawsuits and
evidence from animal welfare groups and elephant experts that hauling elephants
across the country in rail cars and getting them to perform constituted cruel treatment. Ringling
always maintained that its elephants were treated with the utmost care.

Ringling’s audiences had
been shrinking for several years, reflecting changing tastes and sensibilities
in its audiences and, notably, the influence of negative publicity generated by
animal rights and animal welfare organizations, which had staged protests and
filed hundreds of legal complaints against Ringling Bros. and other circuses
over alleged animal abuse, particularly of elephants. Had Ringling continued
with its elephant act, it would not have been able to bring the circus to any
venue in California with its changed rules.
Sad is the fact that Ringling, which has been
enterprising enough to stay in business for more than a century, could not
transform its circus into an elephant-free entertainment feature that could
thrive in a world of children and adults.

Ringling’s final
performance will take place on May 21 in Uniondale, New York. So what do you
feel ~ though, for sure, we are unlike to watch them perform there !!

Thursday, January 19, 2017

People wear watches, some
wear for time and some as a brand value ! ~ gone are the days when HMT was the
best seller in India.

One of the very famous
International brands is Harry Winston, founded in New York city in 1932, by a
gemologist business person.

From the
acquisition of some of the world's most famous gemstones, to adorning
generations of famous faces, from Hollywood legends to international Heads of
State, for over eight decades, the Harry Winston name has been reported to be
one among the best. The American
jewellery company, Harry Winston, Inc. produces Swiss timepieces. Founded in 1932, it was the first jeweller to
loan diamonds to an actress for the Academy Awards, in 1943 !

Cannes is a city located
on the French Riviera, a commune of France located in the Alpes-Maritimes
department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, this city is known for its association with the
rich and famous, its luxury hotels and restaurants, and for several
conferences. Many would have read and
followed the ‘Cannes Festival’ named
until 2002 as the International Film Festival (Festival international du film)
and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, the annual event previews new films of all
genres, including documentaries, from all around the world.

The 2016 Cannes Film
Festival took place in May 2016. Australian film director George
Miller was the President of the Jury. In
2017, the festival will celebrate its 70th anniversary edition. The
city of Cannes is in news, not because of any celebrity value but for a
audacious robbery.

Media reports state that
an audacious robber held up a jewellery
shop in Cannes with a pistol and a grenade and escaped on foot with £13million
worth of diamonds. The man, who was in
his 30s and wore sunglasses, strolled casually into the Harry Winston luxury
jewellery shop on the city's famed Croisette promenade. Security camera footage
is being examined in an effort to identify the robber but the Mayor of Cannes,
David Lisnard said the robbery 'could and should have been avoided' and he
called on the government to allow jewellery shops to use biometric recognition
software.

France has a notoriety for
big robberies. In Dec 2008, 4 men
including 3 wearing women’s clothes stole watches and pieces of jewellery worth
£50million from the Cartier boutique in Cannes.
In Feb 2010, a thief, targetted and took away a handbag with £4million
worth of jewels from Christina Chernovetska, the daughter of the Mayor of Kiev,
as she drove into Paris from Charles De Gaulle airport in a chauffeur-driven
car.

Reporting of the incident,
the regional prosecutor, Alain Guimbard, said the man claimed to be looking on
behalf of a wealthy sponsor: 'He asked to see diamond ornaments on behalf of a
sponsor. The saleswoman was suspicious and gave him a catalogue.' He then
pulled out a 7.65-calibre automatic pistol and a grenade, forced security
guards to lie on the floor and ordered the two saleswomen to open the display
cases. It is not clear if the grenade was real but the staff clearly were not
taking any chances.

Nobody was injured in the
heist and the robber was in and out of the shop within eight minutes. Harry
Winston is a New York-based jeweller that popular with billionaires and
actresses who are often seen wearing its gems on the red carpet at the Oscars. It is not the first time the Croisette has
been targeted.

France is gaining an
unwelcome reputation as an easy target for jewel thieves. In October last year
£8.5million worth of jewellery belonging to Kim Kardashian was stolen from her
at an apartment in Paris. Several men were arrested earlier this month but they
have not been charged and experts say her jewels have long ago been sold on to
a fence and recycled.

Wednesday, January 18, 2017

On 23rd Jan, We will be celebrating the 120th
birth anniversary of the greatest person
of our Nation ***

I first heard of Audi Car,
when Ravi Shastri was the player of the tournament down under in 1985. Audi, is a German automobile manufacturer that
designs, engineers, produces, markets and distributes luxury vehicles, having
its HQ at Ingolstadt, Bavaria, Germany. Decades
ago, existed – Wanderer, another famous German manufacturer of bicycles, motorcycles,
automobiles, vans and other machinery. Established as Winklhofer & Jaenicke
in 1896, the company used the Wanderer brand name from 1911, making civilian
automobiles until 1941 and military vehicles until 1945. During the Great Depression, in 1929, the
company owner, Dresdner Bank, sold the motorcycle business and in 1932 divested the rest of Wanderer. The
car division with its Siegmar factory became part of Auto Union together with
Horch, Audi and DKW.

The post is certainly about Subhas Chandra Bose – whose birth anniversary
falls on 23rd Jan. Subhas
Chandra Bose,(Bengali:সুভাষচন্দ্রবসু, (January 23,
1897 – August 18, 1945 [disputed],
very popularly known as Nethaji (lit. "Respected Leader"), was one of
the most prominent and highly respected leaders of the Indian Independence
Movement against the British Raj.

Bose was elected president of the Indian National
Congress for two consecutive terms but resigned from the post following
ideological conflicts with Mahatma Gandhi. Bose believed that Mahatma Gandhi's
tactics of non-violence would never be sufficient to secureIndia's independence, and
advocated violent resistance. He established a separate political party, the
All India Forward Bloc and continued to call for the full and immediate
independence ofIndiafrom British rule. He was imprisoned by the British authorities
eleven times.

His stance did not change with the outbreak of the Second
world war, which he saw as an opportunity to take advantage of British
weakness. At the outset of the war, he fledIndiaand travelled to the Soviet
Union,GermanyandJapanseeking an alliance with the aim of attacking the British
inIndia. With Japanese assistance he re-organised and later
led the Indian National Army, formed from Indian prisoners-of-war and
plantation workers fromMalaya,Singaporeand other parts ofSoutheast Asia, against
British forces. With Japanese monetary, political, diplomatic and military
assistance, he formed the Azad Hind Government in exile, regrouped and led the
Indian National Army to battle against the allies in Imphal & Burma during the
World War II .. .. there is unresolved mystery in the life of reverred Netaji and
more so, surrounding his disappearance and perceived death .. .. now read this intresting piece from
Daily Mail. Nethaji Audi Car

President
Pranab Mukherjee will unveil the car that Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose used to escape from his
residence in Bihar to catch a train to Delhi in 1941. The Audi Wanderer W24
will be unveiled at Netaji Bhavan in Kolkata.

On January
18, Sugata Bose, Netaji's grand-nephew and also a Trinamool MP, will accompany
the President to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the great escape. In 1941, the 1937 Audi Wanderer W24
transported Netaji from his Elgin Road residence in Kolkata (then in Bihar) to
Gomoh railway station to catch the Kalka Mail to Delhi despite 24x7
surveillance by the British.

A group of
10 mechanics from Audi Kolkata have restored the iconic four-door Audi (then
Auto Union) Wanderer W24 to its former glory. In an interview with a newspaper,
Sugata Bose said: 'Audi gave technical expertise and a vintage car restorer,
Pallab Roy, and his team started working in May 2016 to restore it fully. 'It
is the most prized possession of the Netaji Research Bureau museum. Now, once a
week, people will see this car in motion in the driveway of the building.'

In the 1937
Wanderer W24 lies a 1767cc, four-cylinder engine that produces 42hp @3500rpm
which can take it up to a top speed of 108kmph. The engine is mated to a
four-speed manual transmission and has a fuel capacity of 40-litres. The
Wanderer W24 came with a wheelbase of 2600mm, with a length of 4280mm, width of
1645mm and height of 1600mm. It has a ground clearance of 200mm - the same as
of the present day Audi Q5.

Auto Union
had manufactured only 22500 units of the Wanderer W24 and Netaji was said to be
the first Indian to own an Audi vehicle in India.

Sunday, January 15, 2017

Today, 15th Jan 2017 ~ is a day of special
significance. After Bhogi and Makara Sankranthi [Pongal], today is dedicated to
the cattle popularly known as ‘Mattu
Pongal’. A day celebrating the
cattle, particularly cows and bulls that play a vital role by working hard to
help the farmers to raise crops on their fields. The festival is an occasion when the fresh
harvests from the fields are shared in the form of food and sweets not only
with the community but also with animals and birds.

India is the famed land of Ramayana. Great preceptors Shankara, Ramanujacharya,
Madwacharya, Gautama Buddha &
Mahaveera taught peace and patience
–Western World, would try depicting it
is a land of snake-charmers, a place where one would encounter cruelty and
people are barbaric. There is no matador
spiking the bull or 'Toro Jubilo' where bull is caked in dry mud having
fireworks attached to its horns – what right they have in trying to depict us
having our bulls and cows, which are worshipped here.

Sadly, there has been developing a big Urban rural disconnect – the modern day
youngsters see rice only in boiled form on their plate, perhaps not knowing how
it is cultivated and how the animals have been
so intertwined with people. Triplicane, the famed land of Sri
Parthasarathi is different – you see so many cows on the road.

By coincidence, today is the 8th day of Irapathu
Uthsavam ……… today it was ‘Raja Mannar’ Thirukolam……….. it is but natural –
Krishna was the King of cowherds and Sri Parthasarathi in His natural self…as Rajamannar, blessed His bakthas.
The whip and the crowning glory were of unparalleled beauty – one could
also notice the small calf at His lovely feet and the beautiful cow behind Him.

Here are some photos of the Lord with the divine
cow as also the other natural ones, decorated and paraded on roads, with people
offering them sweets and their owners some money. It is sharing of happiness everywhere.

Saturday, January 14, 2017

Honestly, even those of us following the
fortunes of 27 teams this season, may not be able to identify at least 5
palyers from this line-up : SB Gohel, PK Panchal, BH Merai, Parthiv Patel, MC
Juneja, RH Bhatt, CJ Gandhi, RB Kalaria, CT Gaja, Rudra Pratap Singh, & HP
Patel – two of better known players – Bumrah was away on National duty, Axar
Patel nursing an injury !

The news is Mumbai is beaten and Gujarat has
won their maiden Ranji trophy.

For those who do not follow Cricket history much, Ranji
Trophy is a domestic first-class cricket championship played in India between
different city and state sides, equivalent to the County Championship in
England and the Sheffield Shield in Australia. The competition is named after
Kumar Shri Ranjitsinhji (Jam Sahib of Nawanagar, also known as
"Ranji") This Indian King born in 1872 played in Tests for the
English Cricket team and also first-class cricket for Cambridge University, and
county cricket for Sussex. Neville
Cardus described him as "the Midsummer night's dream of cricket Ranji trophy was inaugurated in 1934 by the
Maharaja Bhupinder Singh of Patiala. The
first ball was bowled by MJ Gopalan to N Curtis on 4th Nov 1934.

Today, the Ranji Trophy final was delicately
poised – Gujarat set a big 4th innings target could have had it easy playing
for a draw as it had the first innings lead.
They were in for some trouble as they lost 2 quick wickets this morning
at 51 and then were 89/3, A good 53 by
MC Juneja and a Captain’s knock of 143 by Parthiv Patel (with 24 fours) ensured
they chased 311 and won ! Chintan
Tarunbhai Gaja had a six for in Mumbai’s 2nd innings.

Of their 45 appearances in the finals, Bombay
has won 41; followed by Karnataka 8; Delhi 7 and Baroda 5. From 1956-57, Bombay established a remarkable
stranglehold over the tournament, winning 15 straight titles and 18 in 19
years.

Jasprit Bumrah’s finely calibrated with pace,
six wickets for 29 in 2nd innings broke Jarkhand and landed them in the finals
after 65 years. Parthiv Patel scored 90
and 143 – yet, Aditya Tare, the Mumbai captain, said, "He played a good
knock, he rode his luck quite a bit. We have ourselves to blame for the catches
dropped behind the wicket”

For those interested in statistics, Gujarat
played Finals in 1951 against Holkar and lost by 189 runs. In the match played at this same venue,
Indore, Holkar playing 1st made 429 aided by Mushtaq Ali 187 and KM Rangnekar
97. Vinoo Mankad took 6 for 132. Gujarat
made 327 with Kishenchand top scoring 98; JH Shodhan 75; Paul Umrigar 57 &
Walter DSouza 50. Holkar posted huge 443
with Chandu Sarwate making 234. In the
chase, Gujarat were all out for 356 last man JM Patel making 152

Cyclone Nada weakened to a depression but Cyclone Vardah made a landfall in the city,
leaving behind a trail of destruction, including a few deaths and massive
damage to property. The city was shaken by its sheer velocity and devastation. The gutsy
winds uprooted thousands of
trees, removed sheets on tops, felled hoardings and towers across the city, many of which fell on power
lines and caused outages .. .. .. .. this is an unexpected fall-out !

The harvest festival Pongal
brings cheer and happiness to everybody – Chennai is a city of people who had
moved in from their villages decades ago or even centuries ago – the city wears
a great cosmopolitan outlook housing people from North and North-eastern India,
and many foreigners as well. On Pongal
and more specifically for Kanum Pongal, thousands of city residents would
throng important places – topping it would be Marina beach, Vandalur zoo and
Trade fair at exhibition grounds.

The exhibition which
generally is open for around 70 days, apparently is not on – perhaps after the
passing away of the Hon’ble CM as it occurred after the death of MGR. crowds would continue to throng Marina- city Policy would step up security
arrangements. Barricades would be erected preventing people from entering water
and special podiums equipped with public
address system to take care of small children who wander away from their
parents and relatives. Temporary
watchtowers with public address systems will also be set up. There
will be change in traffic arrangements as well.

Then there is the Zoo –
Vandalur Zoo, in the suburb after Tambaram attracts thousands – and during
Pongal (3 days) the nos. are over a lakh.
It has come a longway since its yesteryears at Moore Market
Complex. The Zoological park spread over an area of 602 hectares (1,490 acres),
including a 92.45-hectare (228.4-acre) rescue and rehabilitation centre, houses
2,553 species of flora and fauna; many of the animals are in open enclosures,
visible on the moat. Open safaris for
deer and lions, the Otteri lake, an elephant bath area and white tigers are
among the attractions at the zoo.

The Zoo remains closed and
will not be open to visitors during Pongal, due to Cyclone Vardah. According to zoo officials, more than 15,000
trees were uprooted in the cyclone. Pipelines supplying water to the moat area,
created around enclosures with wild species, have been damaged. Electric poles
and two low-tension (LT) transformers were also damaged, resulting in
disruption of power supply to zoo.

One media reports puts the
loss caused by cyclone at over Rs 10 crore to
the zoo. However, there was no loss of life. No animal escaped from the
zoo, officials said. “Although the animals were safe, they were startled by the
intense cyclone,” added a ranger. Facilities for the public, including safari
centres in the park were damaged.

With cut in electricity,
providing water to animals itself was quite a task. The caring staff carried
food on their head, walking a few kilometres to reach the enclosure as passage was
blocked by fallen trees at many palces. During
last floods, there were rumours of wild animals having escaped. This time too, initial reports said that an
adult Lion-tailed Macaque had escaped after the cyclone damaged the enclosures
of several animals. However, zoo officials clarified that it was the langurs
that had gone missing after a big tree fell on the iron mesh and damaged it
completely. Zoo officials, however, expected
the langurs to return to their enclosure at the time of feeding. Forest Officials had to work overtime to
ensure that the animals and birds are
not stressed. There were special patrol
teams for checking the fallen walls and whether any animals could have escaped
from their enclosures. This was a major
challenge for the zoo managers as the animals could easily swim and escape or can even drown the pool of water. The continued wet conditions posed health
hazard to the animals also.

It is stated that there is
progress in repairing ~ as of now, the zoo remains closed to public.